Background: Pancreatic cancer is a fatal cancer with a 5-year survival of only about 4% for all tumors. Thereare only published data on mortality from pancreas cancer and its epidemiology in Iran. The aim of this studywas to present the mortality trends from pancreatic cancer for the Iranian population, using national deathstatistics in order to provide update information for its burden. Methods: National Death Statistics reportedby the Ministry of Health from 1999 to 2004 stratified by age group, sex, and cause of death were included inthe analysis to generate pancreas cancer (ICD-10; 25) annual mortality rates/100,000, overall, by sex and byage group (<15, 15-49 and ≥50 years of age) and age-standardized rates (ASRs). Results: The age standardizedmortality rate of pancreatic cancer decreased slightly during the years under study. Values were higher for malesand increased with age. Conclusion: This study provides a projection of burden of death due to pancreatic cancerfor Iran, indicating that the trend of its mortality is decreasing and may be leveling off in recent years.
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